Renault auto news

Official: Renault chops UK lineup in half

Renault has a wide array of products in its portfolio. In its home market it offers a baker's dozen model lines, and when you get down to bodystyles the range ratchets up past 20.

While we don't get any of them in North America, the United Kingdom remains a vital market for the French automaker. But British buyers haven't been buying Renaults as much as they used to, prompting a drastic shift in strategy. As a result, Renault is cutting the Modus, Kangoo, Wind, Laguna, Espace and the entire Gordini line from its UK lineup, .

So what does that leave for UK shoppers? The Twingo, Clio, Megane, Grand Scenic and Traffic. Renaultsport models remain on offer, through the Twingo RS is now available in only one version. Those will soon be joined by the Fluence ZE and Twizy, as well as the Dacia range. Regardless, this represents a drastic cut in a vital market for one of Europe's largest automakers. Details in the press release after the jump.

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Official: Alain Prost wins ice-racing series in Dacia Lodgy Glace MPV

A minivan is not what you'd expect to see winning a racing series. Nor would a budget brand like Dacia. That's where Alain Prost comes into the picture.

The three-time Formula One world champion isn't quite retired: he's still competing in the Andros Trophy, a French ice-racing series. After hoisting the trophy twice in a row with a snow-spec Toyota Auris rally machine, Prost switched over to Dacia, for which he has now claimed his third personal title and the first for Renault's Hungarian budget brand.

The title fight came down to the last race in Auvergne, France, where the natural snow and best efforts of race organizers could not separate Prost (or his son Nicolas) from the bare tarmac. The vehicle with which he did it was a new racer (loosely) based on the new Lodgy, an MPV that doesn't make its production debut until theupcoming Geneva Motor Show.

Check out the high-res photos in the gallery for a closer look and follow the jump for the full press release.

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Rumormill: Renault planning 50th anniversary Alpine tribute concept for Paris

Love it or hate it, the automotive industry of today is not lacking for its exercises in reviving old nameplates. The trend ranges from Mini to Maybach, from Dodge Dart to Dodge Challenger. And the French are certainly not immune. Citroën revived its fabled DS moniker for a range of premium hatchbacks, and Renault - most of all - has been mulling bringing back the Alpine for years now.

Arguably just as central to Renault's performance heritage as the recently revived Gordini line, Alpine made mid-engined sportscars with Renault mechanicals starting in the 1950s and discontinued four decades later. Its most famous model, however, was the A110 (pictured above), which is now celebrating its 50th anniversary. And if a new report from Autocar is accurate, Renault has no intention of letting the occasion slip by unnoticed.

In fact, the French automaker is reportedly planning an Alpine concept car to unveil at the Paris Motor Show next fall. But the question remains whether there's any production potential with such a concept. The French are known for producing some rather intriguing show cars - sportscars in particular - that never seem to get very far from the show stand, from the GTbyCitroën to the Renault DeZir.

Whether Renault can make the business case - without the North American market, at that - to take on the sports car establishment remains to be seen, but having the Nissan product bin to raid certainly couldn't hurt.

Official: Renault launches sleeker Scenic and Grand Scenic minivans

There's seldom anything particularly exciting or glamorous about a minivan. But that doesn't mean their producers can't keep trying. Enter the new 2012 Renault Scenic, and its big brother, the Grand Scenic.

Being European MPVs as opposed to American minivans, the Scenic - and even the larger, seven-passenger Grand Scenic - are typically smaller than the big family-haulers we're used to on this side of the Atlantic. But with facelift Renault has just given the line, they're also considerably sleeker-looking than the vehicles we're used to seeing lined up outside the local elementary school.

That much comes down to the new lights and bumpers front and rear, elements that Renault has packaged with an upgraded interior and a raft of new engines and technologies that set the new Scenic range apart from the one it replaces. A pair of low-emission engines - a 115-horsepower, 1.2-liter turbo and 110-hp, 1.5-liter diesel - join a range of powertrains topped by a 140hp 2.0 mated to a CVT and a 160hp diesel paired with a six-speed manual.

The Scenic family is also the first to incorporate Renault's new lane-departure system and hill-start assist, with a special Bose model (similar to the one found in the Koleos) topping the spec sheet. The new Scenic debuts at the Brussels Motor Show this week before hitting showrooms in 40 countries around the world.

Report: Ghosn rules out Renault returning to U.S.

Fiat may have returned to the U.S. market, but Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn doesn't plan on seeing the his French marque stage a comeback in the Land of the Free. According to The Detroit News, Renault will instead focus its efforts on introducing the brand to the Chinese market. Ghosn said Renault won't return to the U.S. within the foreseeable future. That's no real surprise given how fiercely competitive the fully mature U.S. market is compared to the explosive growth possibilities in China. According to the report, Chinese car buyers took home 17.3 million vehicles last year. That number is up from just 600,000 in in 1999.

Ghosn made the comments at the Automotive News World Congress, which ran along with the 2012 Detroit Auto Show. The executive also made mention of the fact that Nissan has 65 models as of right now, and all of them are either profitable or on their way to becoming so. That wasn't always the case - In 1999, the company featured 43 models. Only four of those were profitable for the company at the time.

Official: Renault makes new Koleos sound sweeter with top-spec Bose edition

Typically, Bose sound systems are found in higher-end automobiles. The Renault Koleos stands as a new exception to that convention, however. Because while the Korean-made crossover is a distinctly more budget-oriented proposition than its costlier counterparts, the top-of-the-line model with the Bose sound system is one of the most popular.

In fact a good 30 percent of previous-generation Koleos buyers opted for the Bose Edition - numbers that Renault couldn't ignore ignore. And so - with the new model now hitting dealers across Europe - the French automaker has rolled out a new Bose Edition.

Naturally, the luxed-up crossover comes with a Bose sound system configured specifically for this vehicle's cabin space. But Renault is also packaging it with extra touches like aluminum-finish mirror caps, tinted rear windows, 17-inch alloys and black lacquer trim inside... and, of course, the requisite badging to let everyone know that the driver has a good ear for finer acoustics.

Buyers can choose between all-wheel drive or front, and between automatic or manual six-speed transmissions, coupled to a 150-horsepower 2.0-liter turbo diesel. Follow the jump for the full specs in the press release.

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Video: Fifth Gear pits Renault Sport Megane 265 Trophy vs Nissan 370Z

Fifth Gear host Tiff Needell had such a good time throwing the Renault Sport Megane 265 Trophy around the track that it made him ask a silly question. Could the 261-horsepower, front-wheel drive, four-seat hot hatch lap quicker than the 324-hp, rear-wheel drive, two-seat Nissan 370Z?

This version of the Renault lapped the Nürburgring in 8:07.97, the quickest front-wheel-drive road car on the timing sheet. Even so, 63 hp down and more than 70 pounds heavier by gross weight, one could expect the Megane to have a hard time even keeping up with the Z. But on a wet track and at the hands of Subaru Rally driver and James Bond stunt driver Mark Higgins (he of the epic Isle of Man save), expectations have a way of going sideways.

Follow the jump for the video to find out which one is more fun and which one is quicker.

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Official: Renault gets creative with Twingo art cars

Art cars are becoming de rigeur once again, but while most automakers getting in on the action contract painters of some sort or another to spruce up their products, Renault has gone in a slightly different direction for its latest project.

To celebrate the arrival of its new Twingo hatchback, the French automaker has brought in a musician, a chef, a fashion designer and a product designer to give their take on the Twingo's interior.

Pop singer Nicola Roberts installed a mobile recording studio and a dressing trailer's worth of equipment in hers. Fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac turned his rolling canvas into a stately presidential city car. Designer Nils Holger Moormann made his Twingo into a mobile "reading room." And chef Davide Scabin drew inspiration from pasta in his interpretation.

Intriguing ideas, all, if a tad impractical. But the photos speak for themselves, so check 'em out in our high-res image gallery and follow the jump for the full press release.

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Official: Lotus Renault GP calls Grosjean back up to partner Raikkonen

Consistency is paramount in racing, but sometimes a thorough shake-up is called for. And that's what's taking place at the Lotus Renault GP team next season.

Not only is the team formerly known as Toleman, Benetton and Renault changing names once again to Lotus, but it's thoroughly shaking up its driver lineup as well. After the surprising announcement that former world champion Kimi Raikkonen is coming back to fill in for the injured Robert Kubica, the team revealed that it's called Romain Grosjean back up to the plate to take Vitaly Petrov's place.

The Franco-Swiss driver has longstanding ties to the team, having served as an official test driver since 2008. He was summoned to the race seat in 2009 when Nelson Piquet was ousted in the wake of the Crashgate scandal, but failed to score a single championship point in those seven races. Now with the experience of having taken the titles in the GP2 Series, the GP2 Asia Series (twice), and the Formula Three Euroseries, Grosjean is getting another shot at the big leagues.

What will happen with Petrov (or Bruno Senna, for that matter) remains to be seen, but given his talents - and the massive sponsorship dollars he brings from a key developing market - we wouldn't be surprised to see him find another ride for next season. Marussia Virgin Racing: we're looking at you, comrades.

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Renault integrating custom tablet into 2012 Zoe and Clio

We've seen plenty of tablets embedded into concepts and project cars, but Renault looks to be the first major automaker to bring a fully functional and embedded tablet into a production vehicle. And it's doing it in two new cars due to arrive next year.

At the LeWeb consumer electronics show in France, Renault unveiled R-Link, a voice-activated telematics platform that combines entertainment, navigation and social functions into a single, integrated seven-inch touchscreen display.

The tablet - which we assume is removable, so this isn't just a glorified touchscreen - can be controlled through either voice commands, the screen or the steering wheel, and Renault claims that 50 apps will be available when it launches on both the new Clio and Zoe models next year.

Navigation is provided by TomTom and Renault is courting developers to bring even more apps to market. However, the French automaker remains mum on specs and the operating system, both of which could pose a challenge to devs. Hit the jump for the release.

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